In 1970 Milton Friedman produced perhaps the most influential popular article by an economist, The Social Responsibility of Business is to Increase Its Profits. Admittedly 43 years late is not the snappiest comeback. (I wrote this in 2013). Still Friedman’s argument has flaws. Many have already tackled major weaknesses. Here I will concentrate on a…
Category: Management Theory
Selfishness and Rationality
People often imply that selfishness is central to rational decision making. Yet this is wrong by any meaningful definition of rationality. Selfishness and rationality are not inextricably intertwined. Defining Rationality Definitions matter in the real world. Managers can believe they commit a business sin by considering others — they are being irrational by not being…
What Is Marketing?
Many issues in management seem to cause confusion. The first I see as a business school professor is the simple question “What is marketing?” This can be surprisingly difficult. (Interestingly if you look the discipline seems to have changed quite a lot since the early days). What Is Marketing Not? Let’s get rid of some…